Friday, February 27, 2009

How could I forget?!

HOw could I have forgotten about this picture?! This is by far one of my favorite pictures EVER. In EXISTENCE. It's AWESOME!

Thursday, February 26, 2009

I'm only missing the yellow slicker and umbrella

Ever wake up and think, "How the heck do I do it?" Not in the "I'm so cool, I rock my socks off," kinda way, either.

I'm at the kids' school every single day of the week now, volunteering, teaching art, etc. I love to do it, but lately, I am feeling overwhelmed. Perhaps by the 3270785298475 other things I have going on. But, I have made a commitment, so I need to be there; it's not like there are many people that are waiting in line to work for free nowadays, yanno?

My brother is having a rough time in his life right now, and for his privacy,, I wont go into any of that here. I'll just say that it is a life-changing, incredibly tragic, and difficult situation. I have been trying to be supportive, and helpful in every way I can, but I really wish I could BE there, like up there where he lives. Sometimes, i just wanna give him a hug; sometimes, I want to help him with everyday-gotta-be-done things that are really tough to get done when you are as stressed out as he is. I just wish I could do MORE, I guess.

My father's health is deteriorating quickly, and he really needs someone to live in, and take care of him. I don't have the room for it here, and I'm not sure that I have the time, with all the volunteering that I've got going on. But I don't know anyone else that will step up, and I feel like I am in a position where I need to choose between my dad and my kids? SO frustrating!

Next, my friend is being screwed over by another friend since they broke up and now Friend 1(the girl) is threatening to (or has already, I haven't heard from her today) take all of Friend 2's(the guy) indiscretions up to his chain of command. Possible consequences range from considerable demotion, to military prison time. I am torn, though. Everything she is saying to the boss-guys is TRUE. So, should I keep my mouth shut, and let them deal with their own issues? Should I warn him? I see this guy several times a week, I'm not even sure I can look at him anymore, knowing what is coming to him...but on the other hand, he made his own decisions, knowing the consequences. And then, should I tell my husband, who is friends and has to WORK with this guy every day? That would put him in a rough position, but I feel TERRIBLE keeping things from my husband, and I fear he may be upset when all this shit hits the fan, and he finds out that I knew it was coming, and didn't talk to him about it...UGH!

My children are getting injured on an almost-daily basis by a bully at school now. This kid has been bothering them for a while, and tells Isaac every day that he is going to kill him...but I don't see anything being done about it. No, but they want ISAAC to go to a special counsellor, and they want to have these meetings about how he doesn't seem to be able to interact well with the other children. Isaac gets angry and yells. This other kid gets angry, and HITS...or throws things, or kicks, etc. The kids KICKS ME. I said something to the boy recently, when he would not leave my kids alone, was pushing them down, and saying very hurtful things to them. I told him that he needed to leave my kids alone, and that it was unacceptable behavior. The next week, got a message (through my son's teacher) that his mother was upset that I spoke to her child, and that I am not allowed to do that anymore, that I am only to bring my problems to HER. That would have been fine, but I did not see ANY parents with this kid. I have met his mom ONCE, and probably wouldn't recognize her! I'm just sick of this kid picking on mine, especially since he HURLED my 1st grade daughter so hard that when she hit the ground, her shoe flew off, 15ft away, on the other side of an 8ft fence! Oh, she's okay, she has a lumpy bruise, and barely-there scratches on her leg, but WTF?? He got a "talking to", and then proceeded to kick me after school (because I got him in trouble @@), and chase my daughter around telling her "I'm glad I hurt you! I will do it again as soon as they aren't looking!" OMG, it makes me SO angry!

So, yes, when it rains it pours. I'm hanging in there, I suppose, but I think to myself every morning, "How do I do it?"

It is never-ending, I fear:
Found out this morning that I am pregnant. Again. My annual positive pregnancy test has me in knots, and because of my history (I miscarry every year), I am having a hard time even considering this a viable pregnancy. I start getting my injections today, and will likely be getting all sorts of bi-weekly blood tests, etc. It's taking all my willpower not to smoke, but to be perfectly honest, the majority of me is screaming

SCREW THIS, I'M TAKING MY BALL, AND GOING HOME!

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Bear head, not a bare head (pt 2)

So, here is the pattern for my teddy bear headband, better and cleared (I hope!). My mom (FiberBabble.com) was kind enough to test the pattern, and give me some feedback. So I have changed some of the directions (dec instead of dcr, for instance), and added some info. Hopefully, this will make it easier for someone else to follow the pattern =]


Bear Head
(That there is my new Furby, Domo, modeling the Bear Head for me =)

Ears (make 2)
G hook, do not join rounds (work in spiral); use st marker to mark beg of each round. You will not be working the last few sts of the final round - this is to leave the bottom of the circle a little "flat" to make it easier to sew onto the band.

-Ch 2
row 1: 6sc in 2nd ch from hook.
row 2: 2sc in each st around.
row 3: +2sc in next st, sc in next st+ around.
row 4: +2sc in next st, sc in next 5 sts+ around.
row 5: sl st in next 3 sts, +sc in next 3 st, 2sc in next st+. Repeat from + to + until 3 sts remain. sl st in last 3 sts.
row 6: sl st in next 3 sts, 2sc in next st, sc in next 4 sts, 2sc in next st, sc in next 6 sts, 2sc in next st, sc in next 4 sts, 2sc in 4th st from end of row. sl st in next st.
Tie off, leaving a long tail to sew the ears to the headband.

Band
I hook
Turning ch counts as st; do not dc into turning ch. This headband has scalloped-looking edges - the turning chain kinda sticks out a little on the ends (a happy unintentional "design feature" ;). The finished headband measures 18in long. I used Red Heart Super Saver yarn.
When I measured my finished headband, I got 8 dc per square inch, including the turning chain (4 dc across, 2 rows high = 1in)


-Ch 7.
row 1: dc into 3rd ch from hook, and ea across. Ch2, turn. (5 dc)
rows 2-10: Repeat row 1.
row 11: dc into first st, 2dc in next st, dc in each st across. Ch2, turn. (6 dc)
row 12: 2dc in first st, dc in next 2sts, 2dc in next st, dc in last st. Ch 2, turn. (8 dc)
row 13: 2dc in first st, dc in next 4 sts, 2dc in next st, dc in last st. Ch2 turn. (10 dc)
rows 14-27: dc in ea st across. Ch2 & turn at the end of each row.
row 28: dec first 2 sts tog, dc in next 4 sts, dec next 2 sts tog, dc in last st. Ch2, turn. (8 dc)
row 29: dec first 2 sts tog, dc in next 2 sts, dec next 2 sts tog, dc in last st. Ch2, turn. (6 dc)
row 30: dc in first st, dec next 2 sts tog, dc in last 2 sts. Ch2, turn. (5 dc)
rows 31-40: dc in each st across. Ch2 & turn at end of ea row.
Tie off.


I measured the headband around my dd's head, and then just stitched the ends together, overlapping, to make it the right length. Easy! I've also learned that my daughter and I have the same sized head =X My husband calls me "Bead-head" ;)

9257946572687 Cards...almost







And this one by my daughter, who is going to be SEVEN in less than a month! Holy cow, where did the time go?!



So, yes, I have been busy! I've spent a couple hours today taking pictures, cropping, posting, etc, so you'll have to wait for another day to see all the crochet projects that I have worked on =]

Thursday, February 12, 2009

6th Picture

1. Go to your pictures on your computer
2. Open the 6th folder
3. Choose the 6th picture
4. Show the picture on your blog and write something about it.
5. Invite 6 new people to this challenge.
6. Link to them and let them know they are challenged.

This is the 6th picture of my 6th folder on my computer. It is my dad, brother, and nephew at the family reunion last July. Definitely one of my favorite pictures ever =]

Thursday, February 05, 2009

The hit heard 'round the World

Last night was Family Science night at the kids' school. It was pretty neat; a whole bunch of tables set up with different interactive science experiments in the auditorium. We made some neat stuff, and I found that my kids have a knack for building simple circuits out of Christmas lights, foil, and drinking straws =]

One of the problems I frequently run into with being a parent of grade-schoolers is how easily our schedule can get thrown off. "Family Nights" usually start around 6:30pm. If they are earlier, many parents would not be able to go because of work. Later, and the kids end up staying up too late. Unfortunately for us, 6:30 is dinner time!

Last night, I was faced with making dinner in less than half an hour, with only ground beef defrosted. Hot dogs, or even fish, would have been no problem. Throw some frozen veggies in the microwave, fry up some fish (we always have a ton of fish in the freezer), and butter some bread. THAT would have been easy.

Instead, I came up with this "recipe", using almost all pre-prepared ingredients. What makes this special was that EVERYONE in the house ate it! With no complaints! And it was comparatively healthy. I actually got compliments at dinner time! Seriously, one for the books, ladies and gentlemen. I served seconds for the first time since...well, since the last time I ordered pizza, actually ;)

Started some spaghetti cooking in a large pot. Then, I pulled out these:
1lb ground beef
1/2c chopped onions
1tsp garlic salt
Browned together in large deep skillet, and added:
1 jar prepared vodka sauce
1c frozen chopped spinach (I buy it in the bag, not the little frozen bricks!)
Simmered, stirring occasionally, until heated through, and pasta was done.

I'm just finishing up the [very scarce] leftovers now, and it is sooo good =]

I found a way to work around my missing camera problem. I went and bought a little memory card for my old camera ($10), and am using that for now. **Stay tuned for tonight, when I will have a new crochet pattern for the most adorable little toadstool...with pictures! =]

**I am starting to believe that the universe does not want me to post pictures on the internet =/ I tried to upload the pictures from my old camera, but it seems my USB cord has been damaged (one end is all rusty). BOOOOO! Well, regardless, have a mushroom pattern, and I *will* find a way to get the pictures up...eventually!